A report by the prisons and probation ombudsman (PPO) has described Neville Husband as possibly the most prolific sex offender in British history, after he committed hundreds of offences against young men and boys while working at Medomsley detention centre in County Durham over three decades.
Neville Husband carried out at least 388 sexual offences between 1969 and 1985, but is believed to have committed hundreds more, potentially exceeding the 450 crimes attributed to Jimmy Savile. The report by Adrian Usher, the PPO for England and Wales, details a culture of abuse that was ‘ignored and dismissed’ by the Prison Service, police, and Home Office.
Usher concluded that wardens at Medomsley were ‘either complicit or incompetent’, with staff referring to inmates abused by Husband as ‘Husband’s wives’. When a staff member used the phrase openly, Husband beat him in front of others. Despite evidence found during a kitchen inspection, no further checks were conducted.
Husband, a former church minister and scout leader, worked at Medomsley’s kitchens, using his control over food to punish and reward victims. He also abused inmates at Portland borstal, HMP Frankland, and Deerbolt youth custody centre. He retired in 1990 and received the imperial service medal before becoming a minister in 1994.
Victims who reported abuse to Durham police were largely dismissed or threatened with rearrest. Husband would tell victims he would make them ‘disappear’. The isolated location of Medomsley, across bleak moorland, compounded feelings of hopelessness. Husband died in 2010.
